Kev the Australian Bushman – Survival and Bushcraft

Over the last few years there has been so much in the media focusing on survival, bushcraft and outdoor skills. You may have watched some of it. I certainly have and I’ve mostly enjoyed them. One of the earliest I recall was ‘The Bushtucker Man’, set in Australia.

From ‘Marooned with Ed Stafford’ to ‘Ray Mears’ Bushcraft’, ‘Alone’ to ‘Dual Survival’, there’s been a wealth of programmes to watch. No doubt, some will have their favourite ‘presenters’. Perhaps Mykel Hawke or Bear Grylls, EJ Snyder or Les Stroud. There are so many others too. Whether it’s entertainment or education you’re after there’s a wealth of great material out there.

However, not all the great survivalists or bushcrafters are media celebrities! Having been greatly influenced by the great Les Hiddins through ‘The Bushtucker Man’, I’ve always felt that areas of the world such as Australia is where true bush skills thrive.

Australian Survival Instructors

For that reason, I took a little trip to Aus in June and met up with Kev Newton of Australian Survival Instructors. The more I got to know Kev, the more I realised just how knowledgeable and inspirational he is with regard to Aussie bushcraft. Furthermore, Kev has agreed to become part of the Survival and Bushcrafts team and will be providing content for the site. So, I asked him to introduce himself, what he does and a little about Australian bushcraft:

Kev’s bit

I was born in the mid ‘60s. This meant I was part of the last generation who grew up, and also spent school years, without either computers or mobile phones. Fun in the 70s, as a young teenager, meant doing things outdoors. So, especially living at the foot of the Blue Mountains, exploring bushland was a perfectly normal part of my life as a young kid.

I remember, when I was about 8, wanting to be a boy scout but was not offered the opportunity to join. ‘Scouting’ in the 70s for boys was still very much involved in teaching traditional bush skills. This included knife and axe usage, lighting fires and learning common sense by seeing both positive and negative consequences.

Early interests

Archery and Aboriginal culture became my interest in my in my early teens. I would avidly read anything on those subjects. This led me to buy my first long bow and also make spears. Later on I got very heavily into bushwalking and kayaking and would plan many trips all over Australia. Those were the days where GPS and mobile phones were unheard of. Common sense prevailed and ‘old school’ navigation was the only way to navigate. I could not depend on anything electronic. 

Time in Europe

In my early 20s I went abroad and lived in London for a few years. There I met my wife, who I have now been with for 30 years. She is from Northern Italy so I also spent a few years living in the Italian Alps.

There I learnt fungi foraging and visited the mycological exhibition run by an association in Bergamo.

Hunting pest species

After returning to Australia I took up my old archery interest and ‘Trophy’ bowhunting came to the fore again. In Australia bowhunting feral (introduced pest species) game is perfectly legal. We are therefore fortunate to be able to hunt such pests. Pigs, deer, goats, camel, buffalo, scrub bulls, cats, rabbits, foxes and wild dogs etc.

The use of tree stand is commonly used by U.S hunters, however I personally have never used a tree stand, so the majority of my hunting was by foot, and also ‘offtrack’. I became a member of an online ‘survivalist’ group just after 2000, followed by my participation in annual large ‘hunts’ which were organised in Queensland, Australia, chasing pigs, foxes, goats and deer.

This experience over many years, amongst people who shared the same interest and passion about survival skills had quite an impact. It was the trampoline which launched me into deeper water about learning more, practising new ‘bush’ skills and becoming more professional about survival skills.

The birth of A.S.I.

Not long after this I was contacted by the Director of Operations, from one of the longest running outdoor centres, in the Blue Mountains. Here courses were held in climbing, abseiling, ice climbing, survival and snow survival. I was asked to teach Survival and Bushcrafting for them. That was what I needed to finally motivate me into forming my own business which I called Australian Survival Instructors.

A land of extremes

Australia is a land of extremes. Temperatures range from highs of 50°C in the central desert regions to below freezing in the higher regions of the country’s southeast. Sometimes these extremes can be experienced on a single day.

From its northern most point at 10° 41′ 21″S on Cape York to the southern tip of Tasmania at 43° 38′ 40″S, Australia experiences almost every climatic condition encountered elsewhere in the world, along with some that are unique. One of the most significant features of Australia’s climate is its long, hot and often dry summers.
The highest temperature on record was recorded in 1960, in Oodnadatta, SA with a temp of 50.7°C, the coldest Charlottes Pass, NSW with a temp of -23°C

Survival or Bushcraft?

Each year in the Blue Mountains, west of Sydney alone, there are on average 130 search & rescues each year, with a small percentage of people missing, never to be seen again.

Survival and bushcraft are two completely different subjects. Survival means not dying. Bushcraft is an Australian term for using natural resources to get by when you are in the bush. This could either be living on the land or simply enjoying shorter periods there. The U.K. does not have ‘Bush’. Irish born Richard Graves, ex CO of the Australian Jungle and Survival & Rescue Detachment, on active service during WWII, with the U.S.A.A.F, summed up ‘Bushcraft’ precisely. When he wrote his ’10 Bushcraft Books’ during World War II, he stated “All that is needed for this work of Bushcraft is a sharp cutting implement: knife, axe or machete”. 

The difference between the UK and Australia

One of the most polarising differences between the U.K. and Australia would have to be the amount of wildlife that can kill people. Besides the obvious large threats such as salt water crocodiles and sharks, Australia is renowned for having all manner of stinging and biting insects and animals which kill. These include the Atrax robustus, commonly known as the Sydney funnel web spider. This has been known to kill within 15 minutes.

We also have venomous snakes which cause, on average, 300 hospitalisations each year. In Australia camping is a family pastime, and every weekend millions of families are out in nature doing this. It is the Aussie way to spend as much time as possible outdoors, enjoying not just beautiful weather, but all manner of outdoor activities, and nothing special.

The same goes for millions of 4WD enthusiasts . The vast distances in Australia means the majority of campers are vehicle based, with an obviously small minority of hikers who go via foot. The unique thing about the fact that millions of people enjoy time in the outdoors down here, means that most campers in Australia would not even know the term “Bushcraft”.

The Aussie definition

So in Australia the term “Bushcraft’ and the practitioners of traditional Bushcraft still very much define the meaning. They regard the subject, as being the skills needed, to both understand, and use the natural materials around you when in the bush. Not relying on modern gear is an important part of that. It is the complete opposite to relying on modern equipment, such as gas stoves, cooking equipment, tents & hammocks etc, when going ‘camping’.

Australian Bushcraft has unique roots, found nowhere else in the world. Aboriginal Culture including Survival Skills, European Pioneer adaptability, and now a modern interest in the use of natural materials and learning from the past 

UK Survival

Survival is no different in the U.K. than it is anywhere on the planet. At its essence, survival is not dying in the outdoors. How we go about that is up to individuals, however statistically people will always die outdoors due to various uncontrollable factors. The U.K. doesn’t have Jungle, Desert, Tropical and Temperate Rainforests, like Australia, but we do share the risk of cold climate deaths.

Outdoor Australia

Australians in general spend a lot of time outdoors, whether it’s camping, fishing, hiking, swimming or surfing. It may be just relaxing somewhere away from the cities. Therefore most of us have some ‘connection’ to the land and the ‘bush’. Once you have experienced the vast spaces in our interior, you soon realise what a massive untouched paradise most of Australia is.

The feeling of being remote

I have lived in Europe, and it always seemed like I was never totally ‘remote’ the way you do here. There would always be a road, or a farmhouse, or some man made structure no matter how far into the ‘country’ I travelled. Even when living in the Italian Alps, there’s always a road at the bottom of each valley.

The ‘bush’ feels like a ‘home’ to me. It is not an alien place, it is not ‘scary’, it is everything one needs. I understand the connection the original inhabitants have, because nature provides everything you need, once you know how to use and share everything available. This is where ‘bushcraft’ in the modern sense derives from. ie: using natural materials to make do. As our early pioneers soon learned to do.

Probably the most influential things in my life concerning survival and bushcraft, before making it a professional career, have been a combination of things. Playing in the bush as a very young child. Reading as many books on adventure, scouting, and aboriginal culture as a teenager, watching Les Hiddins on “The Bush Tucker Man” in the 80s, then spending many years, to this day, bow hunting in remote areas.

What makes A.S.I. unique

A.S.I is unique as far as ‘traditional’ survival course schools go. We promote the fact that women can make up 50% of our clientele. Furthermore, we also employ two female Instructors. This makes females feel comfortable in what is traditionally seen as a male ‘macho’ interest.

We are also the only survival school in Australia which teaches long term survival skills courses. These include primitive pottery, flint knapping, bow making, brain tanning and leather craft. There’s also weaving and weapons making ie spears, woomeras etc.

A.S.I. Instructors also have a deep interest in Australian Aboriginal culture and history. We actively research and trial lost local methods of various material usage. This is not jut for food but also resins, firework, tool making etc.

The area A.S.I operate in on the Central Coast of N.S.W. is steeped in history, including petroglyphs and cave art. A.S.I. is also the only school in Australia actively promoting fungi foraging in a 100% safe way. A.S.I. doesn’t put fungi foraging in the ‘too hard basket’ like most Anglo based Instructors.

As you can tell, Kev will be a massive asset to Survival and Bushcrafts. We very much look forward to his no nonsense Aussie approach to bushcraft, survival and primitive skills.

For further information:

Visit the Australian Survival Instructors website

View and ‘like’ the Australian Survival Instructors Facebook page

Follow Australian Survival Instructors on Instagram

Watch Australian Survival Instructors on YouTube